1995

"Yah! Krystal, heads up!"

The paper airplane was thrown from the 7-year-old's hands, and it soared into the sky. A few loops, a few times upside down, before it finally reached Krystal. Heechul was the one with the big imagination, and Krystal was the one with the big amount of intelligence. They were two completely different kinds of people, yet completely compatible.

Fascinated by what he saw in the sky when Heechul was younger, he always wondered if us humans were ever able to fly - with wings like birds, superpowers like heroes, or with fancy technology like planes. He would think: The seagulls, how could they do it? Superman, he flies off fast without even trying! Heechul, he knew he could never do that, sadly. But, that didn't stop him from always wanting to experience how it felt like to be in the sky and not on the ground.

For Krystal though, that never passed through her mind. She was the top student in her class, and unlike Heechul, she was doing a last-minute review for the upcoming test after her recess. What she focused on was her grades and her future, not much about playing and fun like a usual kid. As a young second grader, she followed her parents' words to do your very best in order to succeed in life, and Krystal was not going to take any chances that could ruin her future. But of course, the large brain she had since birth helped very much with that issue.

Krystal was just about to finally finish this one problem giving her a rough time, until the airplane crashed into her face. Unlike Heechul, who was laughing his off, she was very unamused. 

"Heechul-ah!" She shouted. "Can you not see that I'm studying?!"

Heechul ran up to Krystal and took a seat right next to her, shoving her lightly in the process. "Oh, lighten up!" He replied. 

"I will lighten up when I'm done studying and I get a good grade on the test." 

Heechul scoffed, and picked up the now wrinkled and dirty piece of paper. Changing topics, he asked, "Krystal, wouldn't it be cool if we could fly with wings, just like this paper airplane?"

"Heechul, that's absurd! We don't have wings, we have arms!" Krystal jokingly flapped her arms like a bird would flap their wings, trying to prove us humans could not fly, and Heechul laughed even more.

"I know, I know! But, if we could, wouldn't that be really cool?"

Krystal turned back into her usual serious self.  She examined the airplane in Heechul's hand, and then turned to look at the sky. "Hmm....I guess...."

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2001

"We have wings made for us to glide through life, and they are fully ready to be used now. Just free them, find the perfect breeze to  guide you, and fly off.  Don't ever stop or look back."

Krystal bowed down after finishing her 8th-grade graduation speech, and walked off the stage to her seat. Throughout the entire thing, Heechul was smiling proudly at her. 

Heechul and Krystal have grown as close as two people could be over the last six years. Although Krystal still cared about her grades very much, Heechul had helped her to turn into a lively and vivacious person, much like himself. The serious second-grader still existed inside of Krystal, but she now only came out whenever she was needed. Along with that, Heechul's wonderment with flying had never changed one bit, and now Krystal has grown to have some too. 

But now Krystal was moving to a different city, farther north in the country, and this close duo had to separate. Both knew this day would come, and no matter how much they tried, they just weren't ready to say goodbye and knew they would never be. Heechul and Krystal cherished that one day, that last day of being together.

"Krystal, you did a good job." Heechul whispered to her as she sat down.

"You really think so? I was shaking up there!" She replied, and Heechul nodded yes.

"And before you move away....to remember me by...." Heechul reached into his pocket and took out a paper airplane, one that seemed like all the other ones he usually made, and placed it into her arms. "Here. Keep it somewhere safe if you want."

Krystal was unimpressed and confused at first, since it was just yet another paper airplane, but then she was told to unfold it. When she did, the airplane was suddenly completely different from the others  - because there was a small, handwritten note on it that said:

I won't ever forget you, I promise.

Kim Heechul

 She was touched and speechless, yet Heechul knew there were no replies needed, and placed his hand into hers. "I'm gonna miss you. Even though you're leaving town, you'll never leave my heart." he added.

Krystal's eyes grew teary, and she rested her head on his shoulder. The only thing she was able to say, though she had a million things she wanted to say, was "Thank you."

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July 10, 2004

Heechul was sitting on a bench, shivering in the cold and late night. He was waiting for his parents to pick him up, since he wasn't old enough to drive.

After three years, Heechul still kept his promise and never forgot about Krystal. In fact, he missed her terribly. Unlike Krystal, who kept the paper airplane to remember him by, Heechul knew that both of them went through too much together to forget. He didn't think but knew - or so he thought - that one day, their paths would cross again, and they would continue from where  they left off.

"It's 11:00 now, where are my parents...." He shivered. He looked at both sides of the road, not seeing a single sign of a car, and sighed. 

Then a girl, tall and beautiful, walked out of a shop behind him. At first, he thought she was just another Korean girl roaming the streets. But when he looked up and got a quick glimpse of her face, something struck him. There was something oddly familiar about her. Heechul doubted it, but deep inside, he had a feeling that she wasn't just another Korean girl at all.

She was someone he knew, from his past. 

"Hey, do I know her....?" he muttered to himself. Heechul knew that girl, that face, but he just couldn't put his finger on it. He thought about it for a while as she walked further away. The more he thought, the more she walked. Heechul was right at the edge, he knew she wasn't a stranger....but who was she?

Suddenly, it was like a light was in his head, and everything came back to him in a flash - all the times they've been together, all the times they talked, all of those precious little moments he cherished, all of how he felt for her back then. His heart suddenly rushed, and heat flushed through his head. Immediately forgetting about his parents, Heechul jumped off the bench and ran after her, planning to not let her fly from his grip again.

"Krystal! Krystal! Krystal Ju-"

But she turned around too late. When she finally noticed someone calling her, Heechul was already gone.

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July 11, 2004

"Krystal-unniieeee!"

A girl by the name of Victoria Song burst through the door, making Krystal drop the milk carton she was holding. She leaped onto the couch, grabbed the television remote, and the TV on in lightning speed.

"Victoria, what is so important?" She asked coldly, cleaning up the mess she made on the floor. 

"Come over here! He...he's on the news!" 

"Who?"

"That guy that you liked in middle school! Um....what was his name again? Oh, Kim Heechul!"

Krystal's head shot up and she jumped back onto her feet, completely forgetting about the milk carton she had dropped. She hadn't heard anything about Heechul in years, not even his name. Immediately, Krystal rushed on over to Victoria, worried.

"Kim Heechul? The Kim Heechul?" She asked. "What happened? Please tell me it's good."

Victoria inhaled sharply. "You'll have to watch and see."

Krystal decided to sit down next to her when watching the news report. Just like that, her heart crumbled apart into billions of pieces, the pieces breaking into smaller and smaller ones. The very first thing she heard about Heechul in three years happened to be him....

...being dead.